Harris turned one on October 5 and I can’t believe a year has gone by since his birth!

I wasn’t quite sure what to do, but knew I wanted it to be outdoors. I also didn’t want to spend a lot of money on decorations that would just get thrown away, so figured we’d do a bohemian gathering in the park. Since I am on the board of the Community Farmers Markets, I figured we would do a mid morning brunch in the park adjacent to the Grant Park Farmers Market. This way people could do their shopping and then come join us afterwards.

Before purchasing anything, I shopped my home and my sister in law’s home to see what we already had. I then made a list of the remaining items and headed out to fill the gaps. Of course we had to lay it all out two days before to make sure we liked how it was coming together…..

On the day of the event we got to the park early to set up

For food we ordered several quiches from The Little Tart to be delivered to the farmers market. I also picked up some simple prepared pasta salads, nuts, cheese and fruit and set those up. We ordered a cake from a local vegan bakery and we were all set.

Anyone who knows me knows that I have an extreme dislike for paper plates, napkins, etc. I am the one that brings the real silverware to a picnic because somehow things just taste better when you are eating on real plates. However I was not about to lug 40 place settings to a park for a one year old’s birthday, so I found these great bio degradable forks, plates and cups which matched my decor and got the job done.

Of course we had to have some drinks (because we all know that kids birthdays are really just about the adults) so we made a tequila based punch. I wish I could tell you the recipe but when you live with a mixologist these things get created on the spot. I cut some branches from a few trees at the park and used those as decoration for the table. Simple and easy because life with a toddler is already hard enough.